bill-lobb

Problem there is that as far as I am aware the Compounds cranks were not at 120 degrees. The LP cylinders were 90 deg to each other and the HP at 135 deg to each of them. One was fitted at 120 experimentally. Perhaps he was referring to that one?

If the lettering was done by transfers that would make sense. No point in having a different set for NPCS. Re examining Jenkinson and Essery they do mention the lining changing so I might have over extrapolated. The photo I uploaded is dated 2012, so it will have been before then. Would that predate the current IO group? It also means I can't remember all the design choices I made. I don't think any of the photos I have seen of CCTs show a brake handle. I think the inspiration for mine came from plate 206 in J&E which shows a horsebox with a left facing lever so I assumed other NPCS would be the same. The other side does indeed have a right facing lever. My period is about 1907. The levers, incidentally, are spares from Association MR wagon chassis that I modelled with one side only brakes. Bill

If at all possible try to get sight of "Midland Carriages" by Jenkinson & Essery or V2 of Lacy & Dow's "Midland Railway Carriages". I am not sure if copyright would permit me to upload photos here. The photos in J&E show all with very small lettering. The parcels van has the word "PARCELS" in the waist panel below the central panel which looks to be divide in 2. In the waist panel 2 to the lsft of that are the letters "M.R." - with full stops. The panel 2 to the right of the central one has the number - 27 in the photo. The OCT has "M.R." in the panel to the left of centre and the number (181) in the one to the right. The CCT has "M.R.) in the pane; just below the windon on the left hand door and the number in the corresponding panel on the right hand door. I believe that the lettering would have initially been gold but changed to yellow in the latter part of the Midland's existence. For what it is worth here is my interpretation of David's CCT. I have never been able to decide what the lining would be on these - studying the photos suggests none at all, but I find it almost impossible to distinguish black and crimson in a monochrome photograph. A question on the Midland Railway Society's equivalent to the VAG didn't come up with anything. My interpretation is different to yours, but don't let that put you off - it is a guess. Indeed if you have any further information I'd love to see it. Bill

I will be on holiday for a few days, returning towards the end of next week. Please be patient with me for any orders placed until then. Thanks, Bill

Sorry, but as the new keeper of Shop 1 it is definitely no longer stocked.

Number 2

I remember once seeing an article - probably in Back Track - which plotted the power output v speed for a GNR single and an 0-8-0. The plot for the 0-8-0 was much sharper than the single. In other words, although no one is saying the single could pull more, it produced peak power output over a much wider range of speeds than the 0-8-0. At least I think that is what I recall. I can't put my hand on it now. Bill

Not necessarily true. The beauty of the Deeley regulator is that it started as a 2 cylinder simple - high pressure steam admitted to the low pressure steam chest so the HP cylinder had boiler pressure (less losses in the steam pipes ) on both sides so wasn't contributing anything. As the regulator opened the supply to the LP steam chest was reduced so it became semi compound and when it was open something like half way it becomes full compound. The clever bit is that the slide controlling this has a slot rather than a hole for the control pin so that if you now close the regulator it will continue to work as full compound until the regulator is almost closed. So it can work as compound at lower speeds as long as you have opened the regulator sufficiently first and then partially close it. See "The Midland Compounds" by O. S. Nock for a description and drawings. My understanding is that (and I am on slightly shaky ground) the technique used by LNWR drivers was to open the regulator slightly and then control on the reverser. Applied to a Compound, that meant it never changed over to full compound working. As I say, I am open to correction on that second statement. Bill

Looking in Summerson & E&J all photos of the Belpaire boilered ones have the gubbins for the vacuum brakes on the right hand side, suggesting that the driving position was on the right. The LH drive compounds had it on the left. Were any Midland engines of any sort converted? I know the LMS built LH versions of Compounds and 4Fs from new, but I didn't realize they converted any from RH drive.

Midland Compounds had the coupling rods outside too. Maybe in this case clearance issues led to the cylinders being too far outboard for that?

What scale are you planning on using? I have seen your posts on the 2FS forum, so If you were going that way, David Eveleigh does some etches for M&GN locos in 2mm - his details are in the small suppliers' section of the 2mm Scale Association website. Bill

According to this http://www.2mm.org.uk/standards/basicstd.htm the BTB should be 9.59 (min) - 9.66 (max).

Looking at Bob Essery's article in Midland Record 19 it looks as though an extension was planned to Huddersfield.

There is a story by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle called "The Poison Belt" in which the earth passes through a belt of strange gas that apparently kills everyone on earth bar a few who are in positions that it does not reach them. The heroes of the tale encounter a confused elderly lady who's only question is how is London and North Western stock performing. The idea pf people depending on railway share dividends for income is apparently established in contemporary popular culture. Bill

I am not so much thinking of a business model as the requirements of their traffic. I understand that the NER and GCR used 4-6-0s for fish traffic. However they served huge fishing ports in Hull and Grimsby. I can't think of anywhere the Midland served anything like that size. I understand that the driver for heavier train weights and therefore larger engines in the late 19th & earlier 20th century was the increasing use of corridor carriages. A swift perusal of the Jenkinson & Essery and Lacy & Dow books on Midland carriages show that the Midland was not a huge user of corridor carriages. As Compound2632 has said express freights could be worked by passenger loco. There was an article in (I think) Midland Record describing an express freight service from London which was always diagrammed to a Compound. According to Adrian Tester's book " A Defence of the Midland/LMS Class 4 0-6-0s" the percentage of revenue from goods traffic was: LNWR 59.2% GWR 55.8% Midland 68.7% North Eastern 67.4% L&YR 59.2% Great Central 69.5% According to the footnote these were taken from O S Nocks book on British Steam locomotives but I can't see what period they cover. Interesting that both the Midland and GCR are marginally higher than the NER, which I had always tended to think of the mineral mover par excellence. Bill